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Pitino's Goldencents captures Santa Anita Derby

Goldencents, trained by Doug O'Neill and partly owned by Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino, came on strong down the stretch and held off favored Flashback to win the $750,000 Santa Anita Derby Saturday

ARCADIA Calif. – Rick Pitino's horse had an easier time than his Louisville Cardinals.

Goldencents, in whom the Louisville basketball coach owns 5%, pressed a fast early pace before taking command at the top of the stretch to a 1-1/4-length victory against heavy favorite Flashback in Saturday's $750,000 Santa Anita Derby at Santa Anita Park.

The Cardinals needed a photo finish to beat Wichita State 72-68 in the NCAA Final Four semifinal in Atlanta. It goes without saying that no coach has ever won the NCAA title and owned the winner of the Kentucky Derby, which is Goldencents' next date.

It was the second consecutive triumph in the West Coast's premier Kentucky Derby prep for trainer Doug O'Neill, who swept both races last year with I'll Have Another. And O'Neill once again has catapulted into prominence an obscure jockey.

A year after Mario Gutierrez rode I'll Have Another, Kevin Krigger is the regular rider of Goldencents, winning his first Grade I victory Saturday. Krigger started out riding in his native St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, hardly a hotbed of jockeys. The first African-American to win the Santa Anita Derby, Krigger now will try to become the first to win the Kentucky Derby since Jimmy Winkfield won his second in 1902.

"It's a lifetime achievement," Krigger said. "It's going to mean everything to me. Every horseman dreams about getting into the Run for the Roses."

Majority owners Glenn Sorgenstein and Josh Kaplan also were in the Santa Anita Derby winner's circle for the second consecutive year. They were part of the jam-packed ceremony with I'll Have Another in 2013, but that was simply as part of the O'Neill camp, with I'll Have Another owned by Paul Reddam. Sorgenstein and Kaplan were hoping to find out what it felt like with their own horse.

After winning the $1 million Delta Jackpot and Santa Anita's Sham Stakes, Goldencents finished fourth in the 1 1/16-mile San Felipe, won by the now-sidelined Hear the Ghost, with Flashback a close second. That raised questions about Goldencents' ability to handle 1 1/8 miles, let alone the Kentucky Derby's 1¼ miles.

But Goldencents' camp believed the San Felipe wasn't a fair test, because the colt was taken out of his rhythm when a longshot suddenly stopped in front of him on the first turn. Extricated from that mayhem, Goldencents then hooked up with Flashback, the pair taking off in a speed duel that did in both horses.

"A lot of people jumped off the bandwagon," O'Neill said. "… But he continued to train great. Kevin kept the faith, and he ran today the way we all hoped he would. Couldn't be more proud of the horse or Kevin.

"Not ever having won (the Kentucky Derby) until last year, you never know what it entails to get there and win it. Now we have that feeling. So I think everybody at the barn has that confidence. Obviously you've got to stay injury-free, and have a jockey with ice veins, and Kevin proved today he's got ice veins."

Flashback stablemate Super Ninety Nine set a resolute pace, first quarter-mile in 22.72 seconds and the half-mile in 46.48, with Goldencents on his hip. Flashback, settled into mid-pack early on, ranged up on the outside turning for home. Super Ninety Nine backed out, leaving Goldencents and Flashback to go at it. But this time Goldencents did not flinch, edging away from Flashback before a crowd of 33,005.

"These guys gave me the privilege to be able to ride this horse the way I did today – confidently," Krigger said. "Just go out there and enjoy it, those were the instructions. At no place was I worried if I was in the right spot. … When we turned into the stretch, I said, 'go,' and he said, 'how far?' and kept running."

The final time of 1:48.76 reflected a final eighth-mile of 13.04 seconds and a final three-eighths of a mile in 38.19 seconds.

Flashback finished 8 1/2 lengths in front of Super Ninety Nine, followed by Tiz a Minister, Power Broker (the third Baffert horse in the race), Storm Fighter, Summer Exclusive and Dirty Swagg.

"About the middle of the turn, I was able to edge my way out and I thought I was just going to run by them," said Garrett Gomez, Flashback's new rider. "He actually didn't pick up the way I was expecting him to, and I had to start grinding on him a little bit … When I turned for home, Goldencents quickened just a little bit and I couldn't go with him. Late in the race, my horse never threw the towel in. He kept grinding away, kept staying. He's a young 3-year-old, too. He's been playing catch-up for a while. He's a sincere racehorse.

"You always want to win these races. But this ain't the main goal. The main goal is a month from now."

Baffert said all his horses were in good position turning for home. Of Flashback, he said, "He's still a young horse, and we'll wait for the dust to settle. He had every chance to win today and couldn't get to that horse."

Goldencents, who is named after the goldencents.com website that is one of Sorgenstein and Kaplan's businesses, now is 4-1-0 in six starts, earning $1.25 million with the $450,000 payday.